Regents approve new hires, salary increase

Northwest's Board of Regents met Thursday, Aug. 2, and approved a series of proposals designed to prepare the University for predicted enrollment growth while continuing efforts to keep faculty and staff compensation in line with market levels.

Provost Kichoon Yang, Northwest's chief academic officer, said the measures are largely in response to encouraging enrollment estimates. He added that this fall's entering class size is expected to increase by more than 25 percent over the average total of the past five years.

Though preliminary indicators, such as paid housing deposits, are positive, the projected size of the new freshman/transfer class -- about 1,500 students -- is only an estimate. Exact figures won't be available for several weeks after the start of the fall trimester on Aug. 27.

Yang credited growing enrollment to a number of factors, including newly constructed residence halls, a highly visible intercollegiate athletics program and well-executed recruiting and marketing efforts.

He said Northwest is "bucking the trend" with regard to enrollment in Missouri, and noted that new-student numbers at a number of other state-assisted universities appear largely unchanged.

Growth and compensation measures approved by the regents Aug. 2 include:

A 2 percent mid-year pay increase for all University employees effective in January 2008. President Dean L. Hubbard said the raise is justified by market data indicating that Northwest faces a competitive disadvantage when seeking to recruit and retain faculty and staff. The increase is contingent on the receipt of state funds appropriated this spring.
The hiring of one new permanent faculty member each for the departments of biology and chemistry/physics beginning with the 2008-'09 academic year. This fall the University will also seek to hire an assistant director of outreach for the Northwest Kansas City Center in Liberty and an office manager for a similar academic center opening soon in downtown St. Joseph.
The hiring of five maintenance workers (four custodians and one electronic lock/paint/carpentry technician) needed to service new campus buildings, primarily residence facilities such as the 498-bed freshman complex scheduled to open this fall.

For more information, please contact:

Anthony Brown,
News Bureau Manager
E-Mail: abrown@nwmissouri.edu
Phone (660) 562-1704
Fax (660) 562-1900

Northwest Missouri State University
219 Administration Building,
800 University Drive
Maryville, MO 64468

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